Caught in a canyon

• A dramatic rescue at Toora last week turned out for the good for a lucky local driver.

• A huge number of people helped to get the accident victim to hospital.

ON Thursday August 17, a Welshpool man was taken to La Trobe Hospital after surviving a horror crash.

Sergeant Barrie McCoy was on the scene for several hours and explained how the man in his forties was in a precarious position because his car was completely angled above him and could have fallen on him.

“He is a very lucky man,” Sergeant McCoy said. “It seems he was unconscious for a while as he ploughed 100 metres off the cliff on Silcocks Hill Road, Toora at 6am and didn’t call 000 until 7:15am.”

It was too dangerous for anyone to go down there until the car was secured.

“We had three massive problems,” Sergeant McCoy said. “The first was securing the vehicle, the second was getting first aid to him and the third was getting him out.”

Although the man had dragged himself from his car he was then unwilling to try to move any further.

He had suffered a previous broken neck and was very concerned he would cause damage to himself if he moved.

The Morwell high angle search and rescue team were there along with Ambulance Para-medics, CFA, SES and Victoria Police search and rescue.

They were eventually able to rescue the man who had survived several hours in very cold conditions.

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